Early Spring Trout Fishing
Early Spring Trout Fishing

Early Spring Trout Fishing Spring in Northeast Iowa’s Driftless Region marks the beginning of one of the most rewarding trout fishing seasons in the Midwest. This is one of the prettiest areas in Northern Iowa marked with limestone bluffs, spring-fed creeks, and rolling pastures. The Driftless Region contains a several cold, clear streams that flow steadily year-round. This creates perfect trout habitat, and spring offers fishermen peaceful days on the water. With stable water temperatures, increasing insect activity, and hungry post-winter trout, there’s no better time to explore these legendary streams. Why The Driftless Region? This region is a trout […]

Read more

Check Out Our Current Issue!

Reliable Catfish

Reliable Catfish As catfishing grows across the United States it has become more about what to catch them on than how to catch them. Catfishing can be as simple or difficult as you want to make it. Understanding them and how they operate like anything is the key to success. Also, like anything else the […]

READ MORE
Upland Dog Steadiness Training

When we Steady our Upland Hunting Dogs

When we Steady our Upland Hunting Dogs Steady to Wing Pointers: For a pointer to be steady to wing (or steady to flush) this would mean that once the dog goes on point, they remain on point while the handler searches for the bird and kicks the bird up (this would also be called “Whoa […]

READ MORE
Early Spring Walleye Destinations

Early Spring Walleye Destinations

Early Spring Walleye Destinations We’re turning the page. Old Man Winter is slowly losing his grip, and our thoughts turn to spring and open water walleye fishing. Beginning in March through April, it’s definitely time to cash in on the early walleye bite. For this article, however, we’re going to talk about three different early […]

READ MORE
Strategies to Obtain more Hunting Ground

Strategies to Obtain more Hunting Ground

Strategies to Obtain more Hunting Ground Locking down permission to hunt private land in Iowa is like winning the lottery. Hunters on private land enjoy higher success rates and influence how often the farm is hunted, how many animals are harvested, and how habitat is managed. Moreover, hunters that respect landowners’ wishes and are willing […]

READ MORE

Featured Story

Big Buck Profile: The 2025 Gandy Buck

Ok, this first big buck profile is a little self-serving in that it is of a buck that I personally took this past deer season. While it is likely not the “biggest” big buck that we will profile this year it is definitely one of my most special deer ever.

Turning a Dream into Reality

As has been noted in several articles since 2023, my family and I finally put together the means to purchase our very own piece of Iowa ground. “The 32,” as we call it, has become a passion project to see if we could take an unassuming piece of real estate and harvest a mature deer from there by giving him all he needs in the way of habitat. This year was the first year that the farm would be huntable in the state in which we intended due to construction projects over the past couple of seasons.

READ FULL STORY

Created By Iowans, For Iowans

The Iowa Sportsman website and magazine are Iowa’s only privately owned media sources catering to hunters, anglers, and outdoor enthusiasts here in Iowa. Simply put, we are unlike other Iowa outdoor media sources: All our staff is from Iowa, from our publisher to our writers. We actually follow through on what we advertise; we provide knowledgeable content from people who know the industry or sport discussed.